Dec 26, 2024 03:00 AM IST
The debate on the Constitution in the recently concluded winter session of Parliament, specifically the controversy over Shah’s speech, was also discussed.
Managing the fallout of the controversy surrounding home minister Amit Shah’s speech in Parliament and better coordination between allies through structured meetings between Union ministers and lawmakers dominated a meeting of parties that are part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that was held at the residence of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president and Union minister JP Nadda.
Nadda and Shah led the discussions, people aware of what transpired during the meeting said on condition of anonymity. Expectedly, they added, one of the issues discussed was the debate on the Constitution in the recently concluded winter session of Parliament, specifically, the controversy over Shah’s speech during which, the Opposition alleged, he insulted B R Ambedkar.
Also read | Ambedkar row: Parliament in chaos as Rahul’s alleged push sends BJP MPs to ICU; Kharge says I was pushed too
The Congress and other opposition parties plan to launch a nationwide agitation demanding Shah’s resignation. The Congress is expected to firm up its strategy over the weekend at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee in Belgaum, Karnataka. “The message to alliance partners was clear– please listen to the entire speech and make up your mind. We won’t tell you how to respond to the Opposition but there isn’t any need to be defensive,’’ said an NDA leader.
Shah and Nadda also reiterated the need to adhere to the plan of having Union ministers (both Cabinet ministers and ministers of state) meet with 10 lawmakers informally attached to each ministry every month to discuss government policies, schemes, and projects.
Apart from Nadda and Shah, Andhra chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, Janata Dal (United) leader and Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Janata Dal (S) leader and minister HD Kumaraswamy, Apna Dal leader and minister Anupriya Patel, and HAM leader and minister Jitan Ram Manjhi were among those present at the lunch meeting that lasted a little under 90 minutes.
Also read | Congress launches nationwide campaign demanding Shah’s resignation over Ambedkar remark
Shiv Sena leader and Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde was absent as was Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, who is believed to have called the home minister to express his inability to attend. While there has been speculation about Shinde’s unhappiness about losing the top job in Maharashtra, minister of state Prataprao Jadhav was present as the Sena’s representative. Cabinet minister and LJP (RV) leader Chirag Paswan didn’t attend the meeting as he was travelling.
“All these leaders came to pay their respect at Atal ji’s (Vajpayee) birth anniversary and so the NDA meeting was routine, to just discuss usual matters,’’ said a BJP leader.
To be sure, the government has sought to ensure the Opposition does not succeed in building momentum around the Ambedkar controversy. It has pointed out that Shah was targeting the Congress, which it says, has repeatedly undermined Ambedkar. Shah himself held a press conference reiterating this point, with the Prime Minister lending his weight through a tweet. With the Opposition continuing to focus on the issue, it was expected that the NDA would come up with a counterstrategy.
In addition, a second person from another BJP ally said, the meeting also discussed the importance of adhering to the planned schedule for the meetings of ministers and lawmakers. These groups are meant to have two in-person meetings during parliament sessions every month and monthly meetings via video conference when sessions are not underway. Two organisation members from the BJP are also supposed to attend as observers.
Also read | ‘Savarkar said there’s nothing Indian about Constitution’: Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha
“Only two ministers kept up with this schedule and there too. So, we are now going to get serious about this and ensure that two sets of reports are sent after each meeting, one by the minister and the other by party observers,’’ said the second person. The coordination committees are believed to be the idea of Shah and the union ministers have been asked to set up a separate secretariat to deal with them.
A third alliance leader said that while there was no overt discussion on the BJP’s new party president, there was indication that this could happen in late January or mid-February. This person added that Nadda said that both he and the home minister were available to address any concerns of allies.
With 240 members in the Lok Sabha, the BJP is dependant on allies such as the TDP, the JD(U) and the Shiv Sena for a majority, making such coordination meetings critical.
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